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Gifted and talented

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Original poster

18 month old can count to 14 - normal?

57 replies

empen · 26/09/2007 13:54

is it normal for an 18month old being able to count to 14 - the kid is not mine, rather someone we met in a pub who was showing off. DP was amazed and I could not remember how old mine had been.

OP posts:
3andnomore · 26/09/2007 21:46

lol...well, my ys has been able to count to ten for ages and now gets to about 14...he is now 3 though...but the other day we were at a till and he was counting the item I put through the till, and the couple infront of us seemed really surprised by this ability...
lol....he has an excuse though...he has got to older brothers, so, is likely to learn from them....

brimfull · 26/09/2007 21:49

my ds could count the stairs at this age ,it was a memory thing though not actual counting.

tigermeow · 26/09/2007 21:51

My DD had no interest in numbers...maybe from the fact that I never counted anything with her! At 22 months I counted the stairs a few times, still no interest from her so I gave up! All of a sudden, a month later at 23 months she counted out 10 peas (counting each one correctly) from her plate! Hmmm, where did that come from?! A week later she started on "I have 5 toys, if i take one away I will have 4 left, if one more goes away, I will have 1 2 3 three!" She did the same with adding the toys. Now at 30months she can do basic addition and subtraction but doesn't really have any interest in number things...fine by me, I hated maths!

SleeplessInTheStaceym11House · 26/09/2007 22:06

my dd could reciet {why cant i spell today, and why cant i work out why its spelt wrong?!?!?!) numbers to 16 (the number of stairs we have) at about 18 months. by two she could touch count to about 12, now shes nearly 3 and can still touch count to 12!

completely normal i think!

fihi · 26/09/2007 22:09

my DS2 and DD 'counted' at this age, but it's because they have asthma and we count the seconds or the breaths whilst the 'spacer' mask is on their face! Do this x4 morning and night, which adds up to lots of conting times in the day, and there you have it a little prodigy...hmm p'raps not?!
So like the others, they're obviously just reciting a familiar bunch of words. it's a good stunt for impressing grannies and friends tho!

fihi · 26/09/2007 22:09

oops o meant counting.

ladygrinningsoul · 26/09/2007 23:23

My DS really could count to 20 at that age, but he has hyperlexia and high functioning autism (he couldn't say much else) It's an example of asynchronous development which is a red flag for ASD.

sparklygirl · 26/09/2007 23:44

My DD has been able to count to ten from about 15 months, like you say its rhyming more than anything, but it still is a very important part of learning. DD now 20 months and a very good talker, been told she advanced for her age by many child professionals. We will see what the future brings, as long as she?s happy and healthy. Thats all that matters.

EmsMum · 27/09/2007 00:25

Cant quite remember the age when DD started counting..
one two three four five six seven eight nine ten eleven twelve dig delve thirteen fourteen er er

I swear I thought she was going to go to school thinking that dig and delve were numbers.

Original poster
empen · 27/09/2007 15:39

sleepless-recite

OP posts:
SleeplessInTheStaceym11House · 28/09/2007 08:45

thank youm just couldnt spell at all and it was bugging me!

couldnt even work out what was wrong with my mistakes!

Original poster
empen · 28/09/2007 09:50

Am a bit of a sad git when it comes to spelling and grammer mistakes. I walked past an estate agents the other day and they had a sign in the window advertising for 'Temparery Staff' I actually went in and prentented to look at houses and on the way out I happened to metnion there was a 'minor' mistake on their sign! I am so sad!

OP posts:
elesbells · 28/09/2007 12:02

ahem...grammar

Original poster
empen · 28/09/2007 12:06

deliberate mistake!

OP posts:
debzmarku · 26/06/2008 20:19

When my daughter was 18 months she started to count with biscuits on the floor in her second language and by 20 months could do it in English up to 10 and when I ask her to fetch a certain number of stones she nearly always comes back with the correct amount. I asked her for 5 stones and she shook her head and said 6, WENT AWAY AND CAME BACK WITH 6 STONES! Is this normal?

tortoiseSHELL · 26/06/2008 20:25

Ha, ds2 can't say any numbers, but he can count. He is just 2, and he has been able to do this for about 6 months. He is doing everything backwards - but I know he is 'counting' because he does 1:1 association - makes one sound for each item. And when I ask him to get plates/cups out for dinner he always gets the right number - 3 for the children, 5 for all of us.

He can't really speak either, but he can read about 6 letters! Like I said, upside down child!

keevamum · 26/06/2008 20:26

DD1 was able to count to 20 by 18 months. She had a great memory was an early talker and she was a fantastic mimic, she could even count up to 20 in French aswell. DD2 is a lot more 'average' she has just turned 2 and she counts perfectly to 7 and then goes a little off track eg 7 8 7 9 10 14 18 16 etcetera. Funnily enough she has always counted to 7 accurately from about 18 months but when I think about it she has nearly always heard me counting out her 7 scoops of formula into her bottles.

tortoiseSHELL · 26/06/2008 20:26

Dd at 18 months could count to 10, in English and French! At 3 she could do it in English, French and Spanish.

I was really freaked out in a cafe, when we were counting sugar packets with ds1, who was 3.5, and she suddenly piped up with 'un, deux, trois etc' - I'd been doing a little with ds1 for fun and she had clearly been listening. I noticed various people in the cafe doing a double take, but I was as astonished.

Blandmum · 29/06/2008 15:24

yes

corblimeymadam · 29/06/2008 15:28

This reply has been deleted

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Fleecy · 29/06/2008 21:23

DD has been able to count to 12 since she was about 18 months - but she has no idea what it means. She can 'really' count to two and no higher! I thought that was pretty good going but she is a PFB...

Pavlovthecat · 29/06/2008 21:24

Mine can count to 9.

Counts my toes. fwee, too, sits, nine!

Pavlovthecat · 29/06/2008 21:25

Slightlymadsweden I read your post as

'Crikey DD3 is 17 and can't even say 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 or even 14' ROFL!

sasquatch · 06/07/2008 23:31

My ds used to say 1 through to 19 when about that age climbing stairs, as people say,reciting; then add tenteen! do you think that is counting?

TeeBee · 10/09/2008 21:49

Yeah, mine could do that. And if you showed him lots of dots he could tell you how many there were quicker than I could count them. Bit odd, methinks. He now can count to about 130, he's 3. But then music and maths have always been his 'thing'. Hoping his skills will keep me in my old age.